The ruins themselves interest me quite a bit actually. The rest of the ancient city was restored to perfect, pristine condition throughout most of Falconia and yet this one little section was left in ruin. Could it be that this was a shrine of sorts for the old king ( ) that was left this way as a sign of disrespect. Maybe even the remains of his old palace, if this is just a small portion. It also must be a very remote part of Falconia as we can finally see a little beyond the city (the far off mountains in the background).

Could be that the outskirts didn't benefit as much from the general "restoration" that took place (but then again, the whole city's surrounded by shiny new mega-walls...). Or that some parts judged less useful (or possibly unsavory) were left untouched. Alternatively, maybe some parts of the city that were closely tied to certain astral powers couldn't be revamped like the rest, similar to how spectres couldn't reach Guts and Casca in Godot's mine. Beyond that, it does seem from Rickert's work with the firefighting apparatus that quite a few things were left as they were for people to rediscover. That may have been the case for some parts of the city as well.

Primarily, I think it'd be unlike Miura to finally give us a look at that character with little to no acknowledgement of it. As it's shown here, the figure is apparently sitting on a throne and is central to the framing of that scene, which draws attention to itself, but it really could just be anyone. Afterall, there are tons of statues all over the place (admittedly, most of them have heads, but that could just mean this was a statue that was in progress...). What makes it Gaiseric, necessarily? Our desire

Like I said earlier in the thread, I think the coolness of Rakshas sitting on a headless statue is enough by itself without needing any additional explanation. That being said, that location could plausibly be referenced in a future flashback. It could for example open on the statue's face, then pan out and reveal an intact temple before moving on to the city itself.

As it's shown here, the figure is apparently sitting on a throne and is central to the framing of that scene, which draws attention to itself, but it really could just be anyone. Afterall, there are tons of statues all over the place (admittedly, most of them have heads, but that could just mean this was a statue that was in progress...). What makes it Gaiseric, necessarily? Our desire

True, it's certainly anonymous at this point. All we can tell is whoever it was, was someone who could have been a warrior judging by the physique.

Looking at the surroundings, there are pillar blocks and other slabs that seem broken/ chipped or dislocated from their original place and if you look closely at the floor/ground, it looks like it took a beating. From what's left of the statue's arms, the right extends longer than the left ... doesn't substantially say much but if it were a statue in progress we could assume it'd have equal parts to it, maaaaybe. The way the left arm is shaded from that low angle panel, it doesn't look like smooth, more like broken off.

On the other hand, it couldn't have been made out of 1 big block because we see a similar hole at the center of the arm as we see in those pillar blocks. So maybe it was indeed a work-in-progress statue?

Logged

At the end of time, a moment will come when just one man remains. Then the moment will pass. Man will be gone. There will be nothing to show that we were ever here... but stardust.

On the other hand, it couldn't have been made out of 1 big block because we see a similar hole at the center of the arm as we see in those pillar blocks. So maybe it was indeed a work-in-progress statue?

But why would this be a work-in-progress statue if anything else appeared finished? I don't think that apostle built the city in the astral world. I think the city always existed just for Griffith, going out from nowhere

But why would this be a work-in-progress statue if anything else appeared finished? I don't think that apostle built the city in the astral world. I think the city always existed just for Griffith, going out from nowhere

Dude, this is Gaiseric's city from a thousand years ago that was magically restored and transformed into Falconia. Even putting aside the fact it's obvious, it's been commented on repeatedly by the characters...

It's not required that you notice that detail. Miura explained it to us through character observations upon Falconia's appearance and later by Rickert's words. On top of that, you have the architectural similarities, which can be traced down to the column type.

I know that's what you thought, but Rakshas isn't a mysterious monster of a type we never knew existed that's not an apostle but just so happens to look and behave exactly like one. Ask yourself: what purpose would it serve for things to be so convoluted when for all intents and purposes it makes no difference at all? Rakshas is an apostle. He came to Griffith along with all the other apostles, he serves as an officer in the apostle army, he identifies as an apostle, he has all of the typical apostle traits... And he will very possibly show us his apostle form in the next episode.

You know, I like to remind people every time this is brought up that when the apostles first came to serve Griffith in Shet, some folks speculated that they were something else, another type of being. Maybe legendary creatures brought to life, that kind of thing. When we learned more about them and the demon corps they formed, most people figured it out: they were apostles. But some refused to see it. Then Grunbeld was revealed to be an apostle. And yet some still believed! He must have been the exception, but the others were different. Then it was Locus' turn. No matter, Irvine and Rakshas are surely too special to be apostles too! But it turned out Irvine was also an apostle after all. "Who'd have thought?!" And now, finally, Rakshas is the only one left. By now it should be clear that he's an apostle just like the others, but no, not to some, never. When we get to see him transform, I'm sure there will be people out there who will express their surprise. But honestly, it's been a foregone conclusion for over a decade.

Well for me personally, my speculation of Raksas' possible non-Apostle status (though I agree Raksas being an Apsotle is the most likely case) wasn't like how some fans did the same for Locus, Grunbeld, and Irvine because they didn't like the idea of such cool nobel-ish characters having committed the immoral act of the Sacrifice (I knew from the start that they were undeniably Apostles). I mostly thought it was a possible option because Raksas seems to be more of a "wild card" compared to the former three, his desire to eventually kill Griffith stuck out especially. Also (unless he is always transformed under his cloak) he didn't even transform when he was in the center of Ganishka along with Zodd and Griffith/Femto. And I thought perhaps his Kushan/Bakiraka backstory could potentially be an indicator of his powers having something to do with Kushan magic. But again I do agree that him being an Apostle is the most likely and simple case.

And I thought perhaps his Kushan/Bakiraka backstory could potentially be an indicator of his powers having something to do with Kushan magic.

That's intriguing, but while we've seen something like that with Ganishka, he turned out to be an Apostle anyway, and, unlike him or Daiba, Rakshas has never been shown to use any Kushan magic we know of. We can't even be certain the Bakiraka, even the Tapasa as monstrous as they seem, use any such magic to enhance themselves physically considering how shocking it all apparently is to Silat.

But again I do agree that him being an Apostle is the most likely and simple case.

And, as Aaz pointed out, he identifies as/with Apostles, which pretty much makes it the only case barring an outright change to the story. Okay, I think I've built enough official SK.net goodwill now for this next response...

Why would he though? His intent was to conceal himself and observe what was happening during those crucial moments.

And don't forget trailing Skull Knight back to his home base! Now, some, like two out of three administrators of this message board, might claim that Rakshas' appearance here undermines or even refutes that already radical interpretation. On the other hand, it could also indicate something far more sinister and significant... Skull Knight is DEAD! That's right, I'm doubling down, bet it all on "darkness!" This is further supported/foreshadowed by the lack of head on that (Gaiseric?) statue!!

Alright, I'm joking, I give up, but that was to be my Zodd on the rocky knoll. I will say though, I do find it strange, especially considering the reprisal Rickert is receiving in this episode, that Rakshas apparently had no such reaction to Skull Knight's attempted assassination of Femto (even Zodd wasn't in on the plan). Anyway, I'm most looking forward to learning his purpose there, either at the time or to some later end. I hope it wasn't just whimsy, because seeing him bundled up like a little backpack on Zodd's wing alone was probably worth it.

Why would he though? His intent was to conceal himself and observe what was happening during those crucial moments.

I should have rephrased that, I thought it was curious that he (by all appearances) didn't transform along with the other Apostles initially during the fight against the Ganishka-spawn and instead deliberately chose to sneak aboard onto Zodd, without the former (and maybe even Griffith) being aware that he did so. Basically the greater sense of enigma surrounding Raksas' character (he's literally a (likely) Apostle from a "foreign"/non-European analogous country) I felt allowed for more WGM/speculation of his nature compared to other characters.

Looking back at page 2 and Griffith's expression, i started to think more about who could be the main responsible in this whole ordeal concerning the assasination. I am more so talking about who ould have gotten the the idea of actually even attempting to kill Rickert and to get him out of the way.

First i want to talk about Locus, we obviously saw his reaction towards the slap and it was surely not that nice....

Yet i don't think that he would go and order Rakshas to kill Rickert, especially doing so behind the back of Femto. Alone the fact that Griffith held him back from hurting Rickert in episode 337 should have been a sign enough for Locus to leave Rickert alone.

Then we have Rakshas, we know how over protective he is when it comes to his leader, yet that would not make his attempt in killing Rickert reasonable. Rickert is no threat to Griffith, there is not even a need to be protective.

Lastly, only Griffith is left and that's were his expression on page 2 becomes so important to me. We talked about how he held back Locus, but that does not mean that he would not order an assassination afterwards. It's him doing the usual, making orders behind the curtains so that his image as the Falcon of Light does not get damaged. He couldn't just have let Locus kill Rickert in front of others, such as being the pontiff, Charlotte, Sonia and mule.

Additionally on page 3 we see Silat spying on Griffith, which probably gave Silat a trace on what would happen afterwards, but as we know, not even he has a clue on who was responsible for this attempt of assassination, hence him asking Rakshas

As aaz said at this point anything can be impossible, miura could go ahead and throw in something completely new. By the end of the day, the last few epsideos were completely unpredictable.

I personally love the idea of Femto doing stuff like this, not because it's just evil, but because we again would get a deeper look into his ral feelings. All of this stuff, like ordering his men to get Flora's head, his moment with Ganishka and Skull Knight and now maybe even telling Rakshas to kill Rickert would be a great set up towards what he will do in the future of the series. Especially when the Age of darkness comes to fruition.

Well for me personally, my speculation of Raksas' possible non-Apostle status (though I agree Raksas being an Apsotle is the most likely case) wasn't like how some fans did the same for Locus, Grunbeld, and Irvine because they didn't like the idea of such cool nobel-ish characters having committed the immoral act of the Sacrifice (I knew from the start that they were undeniably Apostles).

I don't think you should presume to know what each person's reasons were...

I mostly thought it was a possible option because Raksas seems to be more of a "wild card" compared to the former three, his desire to eventually kill Griffith stuck out especially.

That one quip of his was an illustration of his strangeness, but I wouldn't straight up equate it to a desire to kill Griffith. Also, Zodd's first reaction upon being visited by the Falcon of Light was to attack it. That's actually a much more concrete act of defiance all things considered, actions speaking louder than words.

And I thought perhaps his Kushan/Bakiraka backstory could potentially be an indicator of his powers having something to do with Kushan magic.

The Bakiraka don't use magic, they're experts at training their bodies. They're pretty much antonymous with magic users. As a matter of fact, their philosophy of life is part of why they didn't buy into the Falcon's fairy tale (see episode 294).

I will say though, I do find it strange, especially considering the reprisal Rickert is receiving in this episode, that Rakshas apparently had no such reaction to Skull Knight's attempted assassination of Femto (even Zodd wasn't in on the plan). Anyway, I'm most looking forward to learning his purpose there, either at the time or to some later end. I hope it wasn't just whimsy, because seeing him bundled up like a little backpack on Zodd's wing alone was probably worth it.

I think there was more to that than we know at the moment, and I'm definitely looking forward to learning more about it. Beyond SK's intervention, I think Rakshas may have wanted to bear witness to what was transpiring there, to Griffith showing his true power, that sort of stuff. What for (other than a spy wanting to spy)? Who knows...

I should have rephrased that, I thought it was curious that he (by all appearances) didn't transform along with the other Apostles initially during the fight against the Ganishka-spawn and instead deliberately chose to sneak aboard onto Zodd, without the former (and maybe even Griffith) being aware that he did so.

Well that just fits his character. He's not a battlefield frontline kind of guy, he deals in shadows. Again, nothing surprising given his Bakiraka lineage. Also, I doubt Zodd was unaware that Rakshas was onboard, he probably just didn't care.

Basically the greater sense of enigma surrounding Raksas' character (he's literally a (likely) Apostle from a "foreign"/non-European analogous country) I felt allowed for more WGM/speculation of his nature compared to other characters.

Sure, sure. This has all been discussed many times before, but at the end of the day, he's still an apostle. Hopefully this matter will be settled with the next episode, because I've grown tired of it (and I don't mean that as a knock against you). On a side note, his name is spelled "Rakshas" with an 'h'. It comes from the Indian word "Rakshasa".

Yet i don't think that he would go and order Rakshas to kill Rickert, especially doing so behind the back of Femto. Alone the fact that Griffith held him back from hurting Rickert in episode 337 should have been a sign enough for Locus to leave Rickert alone.

We've seen in the past few episodes that Locus doesn't hesitate to take initiatives, though. He personally went through the trouble of showing the apostles' lair to Rickert to try and intimidate him into playing nice. So the slap was a double humiliation for him. However the more pertinent point to me is that I don't believe Locus holds any authority over Rakshas. They're equals. He could no doubt ask him to do something, but not order him to.

Then we have Rakshas, we know how over protective he is when it comes to his leader, yet that would not make his attempt in killing Rickert reasonable. Rickert is no threat to Griffith, there is not even a need to be protective.

Well he's an apostle and killing doesn't require too much incentive for him. Furthermore, Rickert tarnished Griffith's pristine, untouched-till-now face. The same face Rakshas once said he coveted. That in itself could be his reason. Sacrilege towards something he'd sworn to protect. Which in the end isn't too different from Locus' own reasons to be angry.

Lastly, only Griffith is left and that's were his expression on page 2 becomes so important to me. We talked about how he held back Locus, but that does not mean that he would not order an assassination afterwards. It's him doing the usual, making orders behind the curtains so that his image as the Falcon of Light does not get damaged. He couldn't just have let Locus kill Rickert in front of others, such as being the pontiff, Charlotte, Sonia and mule.

Indeed, it's plausible. Like I said in an earlier post, Griffith/Femto has become alien enough to the reader that we can't know for sure whether he simply would be disappointed, be angry or wouldn't care.

We've seen in the past few episodes that Locus doesn't hesitate to take initiatives, though. He personally went through the trouble of showing the apostles' lair to Rickert to try and intimidate him into playing nice. So the slap was a double humiliation for him. However the more pertinent point to me is that I don't believe Locus holds any authority over Rakshas. They're equals. He could no doubt ask him to do something, but not order him to.

I should have considered this more. Now really thinking about it, imagining Locus ordering Rakshas around seems very weird anyways.

Well he's an apostle and killing doesn't require too much incentive for him. Furthermore, Rickert tarnished Griffith's pristine, untouched-till-now face. The same face Rakshas once said he coveted. That in itself could be his reason. Sacrilege towards something he'd sworn to protect. Which in the end isn't too different from Locus' own reasons to be angry.

Good point. I seriously can't wait to get the answer.

Additionally, the Berserk Manga now has 35 million copies in print worldwide. Here is the article concerning the news, which got mentioned in the latest issue of Young Animal.

The ruins were interesting for sure. They don't look like something that's in the process of being newly built. It looks like a temple to a god or ruler that was destroyed. From the appearance it wasn't recently destroyed either. There's vegetation growing over it and even a decent sized tree that's had time to grow among the stones. So what does that mean? That this place was destroyed before the fall of the capital city? The plants and tree wouldn't have grown on it while the city was buried underground in the dark and doesn't seem like they would have had time to grow since Falconia emerged. I don't know, but it is interesting.

Gaiseric's old stuff keeps getting revamped for new owners. His old armor changed to suit Guts and now his old capital seems to have changed to suit Griffith, at least to some extent with all the falcon motif going on. I'm not suggesting that the armor and the city share any of the same properties, though, just thought it was odd.

That one quip of his was an illustration of his strangeness, but I wouldn't straight up equate it to a desire to kill Griffith.

That was how I saw Rakshas' statement about killing Griffith, too. It was his own weird version of declaring his allegiance to Griffith, like Locus did in a more conventional way when he showed up. Plus they both said they were told to come by an oracle, seems like that message they got was like an all-points-bulletin for apostles. "Attention all apostles! Please report to Shet at once to serve the Hawk of Light!" LOL

Logged

A good sword, even if it rusts and dulls, has good steel that never rusts left over in the wick. That steel's the ultimate steel. Even if it cracks, if you return it to the fire, it's sure to be reborn. - Godot

It looks like a temple to a god or ruler that was destroyed. From the appearance it wasn't recently destroyed either. There's vegetation growing over it and even a decent sized tree that's had time to grow among the stones.

Some great thoughts! And indeed, that occurred to me. Also, regarding the trees and plants -- have we seen any others within Falconia's walls so far? I don't think so. If it was a place of worship, perhaps that made it beyond the reach of the "restoration" effort. Of course, this is getting quite elaborate at this point

Alright, I'm joking, I give up, but that was to be my Zodd on the rocky knoll. I will say though, I do find it strange, especially considering the reprisal Rickert is receiving in this episode, that Rakshas apparently had no such reaction to Skull Knight's attempted assassination of Femto (even Zodd wasn't in on the plan). Anyway, I'm most looking forward to learning his purpose there, either at the time or to some later end. I hope it wasn't just whimsy, because seeing him bundled up like a little backpack on Zodd's wing alone was probably worth it.

Hey you never know. Perhaps when our heroes arrive at Elfhelm they'll find it in ashes, utterly destroyed. Just another day in the life of our little apostle, and he made it back in time for tea

As others have said, I think Griffith ordered Rakshas to kill Rickert, or Rakshas witnessed Rickert slap Griffith and decided to take matters into his own hands (spikes?). I can't see Locus ordering Rakshas to kill Rickert, because they're peers.

I hope Miura lets us back into Griffith's head one day. I'd really like to know what he's thinking.

There's vegetation growing over it and even a decent sized tree that's had time to grow among the stones. So what does that mean? That this place was destroyed before the fall of the capital city? The plants and tree wouldn't have grown on it while the city was buried underground in the dark and doesn't seem like they would have had time to grow since Falconia emerged. I don't know, but it is interesting.

I think you're overanalyzing what is primarily a cool, remote setting for a battle. There are many trivial ways to explain those ruins. For one thing, that they're ancient and date back to Gaiseric's day seems beyond obvious to me. As for the vegetation, it could either be from that era (we don't know exactly what happened to Gaiseric's capital, but it's not unthinkable that some ruins were able to have vegetation grow in them), or more recent (how long has it been since Falconia appeared? We don't know, but crops are being harvested and giant crystals have sprouted all over the place). Either way, I don't expect that aspect of the location to play an important role.

Gaiseric's old stuff keeps getting revamped for new owners. His old armor changed to suit Guts and now his old capital seems to have changed to suit Griffith, at least to some extent with all the falcon motif going on. I'm not suggesting that the armor and the city share any of the same properties, though, just thought it was odd.

That doesn't seem too odd to me. The Skull Knight has taken Guts under his wing, and has seen fit to bequeath the Berserk's armor to him. Meanwhile, the legendary city he had built back in his time was seized and reused by the God Hand to serve their own purposes. If anything, this just underlines how big of a role the events from a thousand years ago played in shaping what is currently happening. And that is quite interesting, although we already knew it. It's been my belief for a long time now that Gaiseric's life may have been the template on which Griffith's current tale is based.

Plus they both said they were told to come by an oracle, seems like that message they got was like an all-points-bulletin for apostles. "Attention all apostles! Please report to Shet at once to serve the Hawk of Light!" LOL

When they talk about the oracle, they refer to the dream(s) of the Falcon of Light that everyone experienced (like the one Zodd had in volume 17). And for apostles it did essentially serve as a call to rally under Griffith's banner.

I think there was more to that than we know at the moment, and I'm definitely looking forward to learning more about it. Beyond SK's intervention, I think Rakshas may have wanted to bear witness to what was transpiring there, to Griffith showing his true power, that sort of stuff. What for (other than a spy wanting to spy)? Who knows...

Yeah, I can certainly see him being curious, even perversely so =), and more importantly it's not the first time we've seen him serve with Zodd as Griffith's personal bodyguards, having previously taken out those Kushan assassins as Mule swore fealty to Griffith. To that point, I just wonder why he didn't leap into action like Zodd, especially being an assassin himself. Either he was but Femto gave the all clear before he could act (and we just didn't see whatever reaction he was having), he intuited that Femto wasn't actually in danger, some combination thereof, OR he was clued into the situation for some specific purpose while Zodd got the "no need to know" treatment. The least impactful interpretation is that we simply didn't see him going "!!" or whatever.

Yet i don't think that he would go and order Rakshas to kill Rickert, especially doing so behind the back of Femto. Alone the fact that Griffith held him back from hurting Rickert in episode 337 should have been a sign enough for Locus to leave Rickert alone.

We've seen in the past few episodes that Locus doesn't hesitate to take initiatives, though. He personally went through the trouble of showing the apostles' lair to Rickert to try and intimidate him into playing nice. So the slap was a double humiliation for him. However the more pertinent point to me is that I don't believe Locus holds any authority over Rakshas. They're equals. He could no doubt ask him to do something, but not order him to.

As others have said, I think Griffith ordered Rakshas to kill Rickert, or Rakshas witnessed Rickert slap Griffith and decided to take matters into his own hands (spikes?). I can't see Locus ordering Rakshas to kill Rickert, because they're peers.

Well, he could have just asked. It could even be a matter of professional courtesy that he notify and let Rakshas handle such action! I wonder about that, not that I disagree with the assessment that they're all essentially co-equals, but how they're roles invest them with different authority, responsibilities, or jurisdictions (Locus is a knight and a decent public "face" for Griffith's Apostle army, Rakshas works in the shadows as a bodyguard or doing wetwork). Like a real bureaucracy!

Anyway, if Locus and Rakshas are indeed going on their own here, it exposes a few cracks in the armor of the whole seemingly loose organization, or lack thereof. Under this scenario, not only are they doing this without Griffith's permission obviously, but Locus is arguably going against a standing order! Which brings up the contradiction that they're committing sacrilege against God in the name of defending that god, plus whatever they feel needs defending is almost an indictment of his legitimacy (which, in part, is why Rickert's action is so threatening to them). Part of the problem is a seeming disconnect on Locus' part understanding Rickert's importance (and maybe rightfully so). Why should God let his peon, whoever he was or is, literally slap him in the face? They sure couldn't get away with that, right? Who the fuck is HE? Some comrade from back in the day? Who cares? Does God care? Why? Why does any of that matter!? It doesn't, right? It essentially undermines everything, and whatever the case, it makes Griffith look weak, in the mind's of his subordinates and therefore in reality. I'm obviously taking it to extremes, but it's worth questioning considering their unity, at least the Apostles total loyalty to Griffith himself, has previously seemed immutable, whereas this action carries a whiff of insubordination and maybe a hint that Guts is more correct than he knows; these guys are really just monsters pretending to be knights, so maybe when the chips are down that house of cards will fall into chaos... or maybe Griffith ordered the hit, or they otherwise have an understanding and he doesn't care, or it's simply easier to ask forgiveness than permission. We'll see, but it's interesting to think about.

Like I said in an earlier post, Griffith/Femto has become alien enough to the reader that we can't know for sure whether he simply would be disappointed, be angry or wouldn't care.

Griffith's reaction the last two episodes have actually been by far the most reminiscent of his human self to me. Rather than just being able to completely control the situation, along with the fuckin' universe, like a God, he had to show a little finesse and good humor and just make the best of it to save a little face in front of his important friends (like the rest of us slobs =). He's done plenty of political maneuvering since he's been back of course, but the deck was always stacked in his favor with the perfect retort always at the ready to completely shut down his would-be adversaries, whereas there was no perfect response here.

Even though it doesn't really fit at all with what we know already of Rakshas, I'd like his apostle form to be a sloth. With these long and sharp claws. Of course they are slow so I really don't think that'll be the case. I just recently saw a picture of one and thought It'd be nice to have a sloth apostle with surprisingly fast skills and agility. Wishfull thinking on my part.

I think you're overanalyzing what is primarily a cool, remote setting for a battle.

There's no reason it can't be both a cool setting and a peek into life 1,000 years ago. Which I think is the basis for all this hubub. That's part of what's made every page of Falconia awesome, for me. This just happens to be one of the more enigmatic pieces of the city so far, a curiosity which has for better or worse fueled most of this conversation. But I'm fully prepared for this to never be explained.

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There are many trivial ways to explain those ruins. For one thing, that they're ancient and date back to Gaiseric's day seems beyond obvious to me. As for the vegetation, it could either be from that era (we don't know exactly what happened to Gaiseric's capital, but it's not unthinkable that some ruins were able to have vegetation grow in them)

Perhaps there's simply vegetation because it's an out-of-the-way part of the city -- which of course makes it unique, given that every scene thus far has been crammed with people. THough not necessarily *special*.

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When I mentioned that, I was thinking about a place that would have retained the mark of astral beings. That does not seem compatible with the idea of worshipping a human figure.

Good point. But of course without any identifying markings (or even arms), we can't say who or what it represented. And it still begs the question why such a seated/throned figure was in that location to begin with.

Locus is arguably going against a standing order! Which brings up the contradiction that they're committing sacrilege against God in the name of defending that god, plus whatever they feel needs defending is almost an indictment of his legitimacy (which, in part, is why Rickert's action is so threatening to them). Part of the problem is a seeming disconnect on Locus' part understanding Rickert's importance (and maybe rightfully so). Why should God let his peon, whoever he was or is, literally slap him in the face? They sure couldn't get away with that, right? Who the fuck is HE? Some comrade from back in the day? Who cares? Does God care? Why? Why does any of that matter!? It doesn't, right?

Check back to when Rickert first came into the palace,. Locus was already very skeptical of him. "Why does this kid matter to Griffith...?" And his fears just came to fruition. I feel like it's impetus for Locus acting on his own, seeing a weakness here, and trying to correct it before it gets out of control. As to the whole "equals" thing, he wouldn't need to compel Rakshas with a direct order. He could just say "maybe that kid should disappear and here's why."

Anyway, if Locus and Rakshas are indeed going on their own here, it exposes a few cracks in the armor of the whole seemingly loose organization, or lack thereof. Under this scenario, not only are they doing this without Griffith's permission obviously, but Locus is arguably going against a standing order!